Expert: Block kids’ ability to send photos, videos

Raising a child is not an easy task, but the inundation of technology is making it even more difficult.

With the advent of text messages and photo sharing, younger and younger children can be, willingly or not, exposed to sexual content.

Sending sexually explicit images, known as sexting, is a big issue. While most underage people believe the photos will never see the light of day, a new study said 87 percent of the photos end up on the Internet, thanks to phone hacking, theft or other means. So how do you protect your kids?

“What you can do is, you can contact your wireless provider — whether it’s AT&T, Verizon or whoever — and have them remove the ability to send an MMS,” said Shawn Edgington, Founder of the Great America No Bull Challenge, an organization that urges kids to exercise digital responsibility.

According to Edgington, disabling MMS will still allow kids to take photo and video on their phone, but they will not be able to send them to other devices. The photos could still get out, but kids will have to go through a lot more effort to place the pictures in a location where they can be taken.

Edgington said, despite blocking MMS, parents should still talk to their children about how quickly one photo can spread around and that, once it’s on the Internet, it’s permanent.